The unrelenting winter of 2014/2015 and its heavy snowfall of March 5th did not stop the New Jersey Prevention Network from hosting its 15th Annual Addiction Conference at the Atlantic City Convention Center on March 6, 2015. Nick Loizzi, the Sussex County Municipal Alliance Coordinator and Cindy Armstrong, Sussex County Alcohol and Drug Abuse Director braved the elements and horrific traffic and made the trek to Atlantic City so that they could attend the day-long conference.

The Keynote speaker was Rokelle Lerner, an award winning psychotherapist and clinical director of InnerPath Workshops for Cottonwood de Tucson in Tucson, Arizona. Her presentation was at times emotional and amusing covering the prevention and treatment fields in a broad multi-media format. Following Ms. Lerner's presentation the attendees broke out into a variety of workshops that were available for the remainder of the day.

There were eleven workshops to choose from that covered many areas of prevention, treatment, recovery, and personal health for people who provide these services. Attendees could choose two of the eleven workshops to attend in morning and afternoon sessions. The workshops presented were: "Working with Gang-Affiliated Youth" by Edwin Torres of the NJ State Commission of Investigation; "Heroin & Narcan in NJ: Starting the Conversation" by Douglas Collier of the NJ Office of the Attorney General; "Medication-Assisted Treatment: Is It for Everyone?" by Suzanne Luce-Conte of Summit Behavioral Health & Michael Paolello of Bergen Regional Medical Center; "Binges, Blunts and Brain Development: Why Delaying the Onset of Alcohol and Other Drugs is So Important" by Dr. Aaron White of the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism; "Physical and Mental Health Dangers of Marijuana Use" by Dr. Calvin Chatlos of Rutgers/UBHC Specialized Addiction Treatment Service; "Brain Recovery Strategies" by Donald Parker of Carrier Clinic; "Distracted Driving: The Travelling Epidemic" by Lt. William Pauli of the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office; "Addressing Hidden Hurt: A New Perspective on Trauma & Its Effect on Long-Term Recovery" by Dr. Alberta Montano-DiFabio of Seabrook House; "Addressing Drug Use within the Adolescent Population" by Dr. Ramon Sohlkhah of the Jersey Shore Medical Center; "Meditation: The Art of Turning Inward" by Penny Prosperi of The Bridge; and "What's Up?! Current Drug Trends" by Michael Litterer of Prevention Links and Timothy McMahon of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

Two additional workshops, called "Power Workshops" provided the opportunity to choose one of two presentations. The first was entitled "Narcissistic Wounds and the Challenge of Recovery: Strategies for Healing" presented by Rokelle Lerner. The second was entitled "Legalization of Marijuana in Colorado: The Impact" presented by Thomas J. Gorman, Director of the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug TraffickingArea.

There were many exhibitors and sponsors on hand during the conference. They provided information to attendees about the various facilities, programs, and initiatives available in the area. The conference also provided an opportunity for everyone to meet their counterparts from throughout the state and network with them regarding their efforts to provide prevention, treatment, and recovery support programs to their communities.

For more information about the conference or for services available within Sussex County, contact the Sussex County Division of Community and Youth Services at (973) 940-5200 or communityservices@sussex.nj.us.